


Sweet Stinger Sickness

by FrozenHearts



Category: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Compliant, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Gen, Honeybee Inn, M/M, Mission Fic, Missions Gone Wrong, Rescue, Rescue Missions, Undercover Missions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-23
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:28:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23810833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FrozenHearts/pseuds/FrozenHearts
Summary: After everything Madame M, Chocobo Sam and Andrea Rhodes did for them, a wrench is thrown in Cloud and co.'s plans when Corneo picks Leslie Kyle.
Relationships: Aerith Gainsborough & Barret Wallace, Aerith Gainsborough & Cloud Strife, Aerith Gainsborough & Tifa Lockhart, Don Corneo/Leslie Kyle, Leslie Kyle & Aerith Gainsborough, Tifa Lockhart & Barret Wallace, Tifa Lockhart & Cloud Strife
Comments: 1
Kudos: 29





	Sweet Stinger Sickness

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't played FF7 yet, nor have I played the remake, but this is based off of info from the wiki and whatever cut scenes I watched on YouTube

"No pretty boys allowed."

Cloud stopped short, almost taking Aerith down with him as he stumbled. Blinking owlishly, Cloud crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow at this lackey.

"What?" he asked, "This is Corneo's place, right?"

"Uh-huh," the doorman said, blowing wispy silver bangs out of his face, "Only allow girls, though."

Before Cloud could say anything, Aerith made a small noise, leaning forward slightly, "Awww, I really wanted to audition tonight!"

Cloud was about to protest- they were here for Tifa, they were going to go in, grab Tifa and get out.

Easy, in his head. Until they made it to the front door. The guy was looking Aerith up and down, yellow eyes scrutinizing as he hummed under his breath; Cloud recognized it as the chocobo theme song he heard played at the ranches, but how he could have heard it down here, Cloud didn't know, nor did they care. 

"What's your name?" the guy asked with an air of boredom.

"Oh!" Aerith beamed, "I'm Aerith- and this is Cloud! What's your name?"

The man returned Aerith's smile, a small twitch of his lip that disappeared as soon as it came.

"Name's Leslie," he said, "But Cloud can't come with you to audition. The Don only wants pretty girls."

"Figures," Cloud muttered, "Already said so- she can't audition for him now?"

Leslie shrugged, "I don't make the rules, but she'll be up against two other eligible girls tonight."

"That's okay!" Aerith nodded, "Just tell me what we need to get and I'll get ready-"

Cloud groaned internally- if Tifa was one of the girls auditioning, fine. If she had to fill Aerith in, so be it, but there was no way-

"- I have a friend who really wants to audition as well, I'll get her ready too!"

\- never mind. They were fucked. He barely listened as Leslie filled Aerith in on what she and her friend would have to do to get ready, and it wasn't until Aerith was dragging him away did he realize she was saying something.

".... a dress too, but with enough help from Andrea Rhodea or Madam M, we should be able to disguise you well enough...." Aerith was muttering to herself, arm looped in Cloud's as they made their way down the block.

Cloud scrunched up his nose, looking down at her, "Wait, what?"

"My friend, silly!" Aerith playfully nudged his ribs with her skinny elbow, "It's you in disguise!"

Well, shit.

\-------

Cloud wanted the floor to swallow him whole.

This dress was itchy under his arms, the wig was shedding every two seconds and if he took another step he was nintey-nine percent sure these damn heels were were snap his ankle and then Tifa and Aertih would have to get him out instead of the other way around. 

With the way Corneo was staring at them, Cloud wanted to reach out and snap his neck, mission be damned. The Don was a rotund asshole, dressed in a sweat-damp sleep shirt, pants that did nothing flattering, and a long red robes trimmed in pink fluff. A gaudy look for a gaudy man and he couldn't take it for one more second as he drooled all over the three of them.

"Hmm..." Corneo wiggled his fingers, "Whoever shall I pick?"

Hopefully no one, Cloud thought as Corneo hovered a little too close for comfort, beady eyes zeroing in on Aerith's waist. She looked good in the red dress, a sexy frilly number that made Cloud's heart race, but now wasn't the time. Tifa went so far as to snarl at Corneo when he reached out to feel the fabric of the purple mini dress she was wearing, the Don jumping back with a sneer.

"Oohh, kitty has claws!" Corneo beamed, "We can easily fix that..."

The heels were starting to get uncomfortable; a full pain throbbed in his ankles as she shifted his weight. Behind them, Cloud could vaguely hear the front door open, hearing Leslie send a soft "Hey, Jay," towards one of Corneo's other lackeys, his boots stomping as he made his way across the room. 

If he was being honest, Cloud forgot that Leslie even worked here. The guy was nice enough, if not a little too quiet and stern for his liking. It was a wonder he even managed to work here of all places with how he looked: pale fair skin with pouty lips, silver hair fringed around large expressive gold eyes?

"No pretty boys allowed," Leslie's voice echoed in Cloud's mind as he awaited the Don's answer and he had to laugh- did Leslie see himself? Ever? 

He clamped his mouth shut as Corneo leaned into him, breath hot in his face as he asked, "And what has you giggling, dearest?"

Cloud settled for a glare, shivering slightly from the grin Corneo gave him. 

A heavy silence hung over the party, and after a few seconds of agony, Corneo snapped his fingers, "Leslie! Get over here, quickly!"

Aerith nudged Cloud's shoulder and he looked over to see a brief flash of panic in Tifa's face as Aertih grimaced. Like the dutiful lackey he was, Leslie stopped what he was doing and lumbered over, leather jacket squeaking as he crossed his arms.

"Need something, sir?" Leslie asked, gold eyes narrowing slightly.

"Are these women not beautiful, Leslie?" Corneo asked, making a grand gesture with the flourish of his arm, "The best brides I've been sent tonight?"

Cloud's breath hitched as he met Leslie's calculating stare. From the corner of his eye, he saw Tifa take Aerith's hand in hers, hiding them expertly behind her back so Corneo wouldn't see. 

Cocking his head, Leslie finally said, "I suppose. They're definitely something."

Ha ha, Cloud thought, feeling his cheeks burn as Corneo took another look, just within grabbing distance as he leaned down to inspect their derrieres once more. 

For a minute, Cloud thought Corneo was going to pick him. Honestly the dress was good, covering all the important bits and Rhodea did a phenomenal job on his makeup, but he really felt the wig was a bit of a giveaway- Andrea couldn't find time to fix his easily recognizable hairstyle into something a little more womanly for this?

He could feel another gaze on him and he averted his eyes to meet Leslie's dead stare. There was a knowing look in his eye, and then he realized, with the little joke and lackadaisical air about him.

Leslie was aware of the plan.

When he figured it out, Cloud wasn't sure- perhaps when Aerith mentioned her "friend" earlier, but if Leslie knew, maybe this could go a little smoother.

Hopefully.

"Secret is safe with me," Leslie mouthed to him over Corneo's shoulder, and Cloud managed a stiff nod before he jumped, masking a yelp behind his manicured hands as Corneo tugged on the decorative bows on his skirt.

"Big boned girlie here looks very promising!" Corneo laughed, turning to pull Leslie forward. His pudgy hand was massive wrapped around the lackey's arm and Cloud saw the brief flash of confusion in Leslie's eye before he managed to another it into something more manageable, "Very pretty-"

"Of course, sir-" Leslie replied, fixing the cap on his hat so it was lower on his face.

"- but we could say you're pretty too," Corneo finished and now Cloud knew he was visibly surprised as Corneo reached over to grasp the nape of Leslie's neck, squeezing possessively, hard enough to force Leslie's head down as he massaged the pulse point. 

"I thought you wanted a girl?" Tifa piped up, her tone oddly cold, "we were told you were looking for a bride-"

"And you three cats were hot to trot!" Corneo sang, "But maybe I can find some pleasure elsewhere for tonight."

Leslie was protesting, his words jumbling together as he rushed to say something, anything to change his mind, and Cloud let himself be pulled forward as Leslie offered him up, panic creeping into those harsh eyes until his pupils were blown with fear.

But Corneo made up his mind and before they knew it, Leslie was forced to follow Corneo down a narrow corridor and off to whatever garish room he had set up for the night. 

The other lackeys were herding Cloud and the girls down a different hallway once the doors were slammed closed, Tifa and Aerith huddling close to him as they walked. Thankfully the goons paid them no mind, probably assuming they were just gossiping like teenagers over not getting picked. 

At least that made it easier for them to talk. 

"Did you guys tell him the plan?" Tifa hissed, "Because now werey royally fucked!"

"We didn't say anything!" Aerith shook her head. Her red lipstick smeared on her teeth as she bit her lip, adding "I hope Leslie can hold his own."

"He's one of Corneo's highest paid goons," Cloud said, "and he managed this far with those looks."

"So?!" Tifa shot back, "We're pretty too and you had to play dress up to get in! Doesn't that mean anything?!"

Cloud opened his mouth to say something, only to swallow his words as the lackey's suddenly pushed them through a set of double doors. They shut with a loud bang, dust erupting in bursts that tickled Cloud's nose. Aerith sneezed, wiping her nose with the back of her hand.

"Alright ladies- have a good night!" the henchman's voice was muffled through the wood, "We'll see y'all later tonight!"

"Shit!" Tifa cursed, kicking the door so hard it rattled on his hinges, "This wasn't how it was supposed to go!"

Aerith wrapped an arm around Tifa, rubbing circles on her back, murmuring soothing nothing's in her ear. Cloud clenched his jaw, heels clicking as he began pacing. His brain was going a mile a minute- he didn't know Leslie at all, but he was already willing to keep their escape plan under wraps. He stayed quiet upon realizing Cloud was a man and in his book right now, that counted for something.

Right?

"Is Barret still in the basement?" Cloud chimed in, "At our meeting spot?"

Tifa's face was pinched as she said, "Yes? Why?"

Reaching into the top of his dress, Cloud pulled it open to rummage around the cup space, until he was able to pull out his phone, the metal cold against his skin and in the back of his mind he was never so happy as he was in this moment when he was able to boot it up. Flicking the screen, he scrolled through his contacts until he found the right one.

"Come on... pick up..." Cloud bit his lip. Absentmindedly, he reached down with one hand to get his shoes off- he knew women were able to run in this things but he was not one of them, thank you- and he motioned for Aerith to keep an eye out on the door as the phone rang in his ear. 

"Hello?" came Barret's voice on the other end, "Cloud? That you?"

"Yeah," Cloud felt relief wash through him, "Change in plans, though."

"What? What did you do-?"

Cloud exchanged a look with Tifa, "Not us. Corneo. Didn't pick any one of us and now we gotta get him out."

Silence on the other end. Cloud could hear weird noises on the other end, the creak of pipes and the whine of metal. Aerith said something about footsteps and Cloud cursed, "Listen, Barret, someone is coming- we gotta move and we gotta move now. Meet us at the Don's corridor and we'll go from there." 

Cloud hung up before Barret could say anything, slipping the phone back into the top of his dress. 

"Well?" Tifa said, "What did Barret say?"

"He's meeting us," Cloud said, "now let's go."

**Author's Note:**

> There is almost no Leslie Kyle content on any site ever I am going to fix that because Leslie?? Is so??? Good???


End file.
